PROPAGATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF FOOD FISHES, 1927 713 
secured to yield upward of 21,000,000 vigorous fry. All of these were released 
on the spawning grounds in the river. 
The constantly increasing pollution from the cities and towns bordering the 
Potomac has reached the point where it tends to limit the spawning grounds of 
the fish that escape the nets in the lower bay. So serious has the matter become 
that the usefulness of the Bryans Point station is lessened materially. The ques- 
tion of moving the station has become acute, and negotiations are under way for 
securing a site on Government-owned land farther down the river, where fish 
are available in greater numbers. 
SHap AND River Herrine. Epenton (N. C.) Station 
[Witt1aM S. VINcEN?, Superintendent] 
From the fish-culturist’s standpoint, the run of glut herring was a failure, 
although fishermen well up the rivers made good catches. A prolonged dry 
season allowed the water in Albemarle Sound and the vicinity of Edenton station 
to become unusually brackish, and it is believed that the herring, failing to en- 
counter the normal fresh water in this region, did not linger on their customary 
spawning grounds but continued up the rivers. In any case, the catch of her- 
ring near the hatchery was small and consisted chiefly of run-down fish. 
Virtual failure likewise attended the shad operations. Large numbers of shad 
were secured at the Capehart fishery, but the great majority were males, 
and of the roes only a few carried mature eggs. This unfavorable condition 
-probably is connected with the situation mentioned above in regard to the 
herring. A take of 800,000 eggs from a catch of 25,000 fish tells the story, but it 
offers no explanation as to the cause. 
ATLANTIC SALMON. CraiG Brook (Mz.) Station 
[GEoRGE N. MontcomeEry, Superintendent] 
All of the Atlantic-salmon eggs handled at this station during the year were 
received from the Canadian Government in exchange for eggs of other species. 
Slightly over 1,500,000 were received, and with the exception of a few incubated 
at the Maine State hatcheries for convenience in distribution all were hatched at 
the Craig Brook station. The resulting fish were distributed in various salmon 
rivers in the State, only 9,000 being carried over for distribution during the 
present year, 
An improvement in weir fishing in the Penobscot River is noted, and fishermen 
have expressed a desire to capture salmon for the station in accordance with 
the former practice. Obtaining eggs from the present source, however, is con- 
siderably less expensive. Angling in the salmon pool at Bangor is reported as 
improving, and it is evident that the continued stocking with Atlantic salmon is 
having its effect. 
FISHES OF MINOR INTERIOR WATERS 
The propagation of the game species, both the trout and warm- 
water varieties, and their distribution on a nation-wide scale have 
become functions of increasing importance. The public demand, 
evinced by the thousands of applications submitted, has taxed the 
facilities of the trout stations, and the production of pondfish has 
been unable to keep pace with the demand. The fact has become 
established that, while civilization and development have doomed 
most forms of wild life, almost every clean body of water will support 
some species of fish if sufficiently stocked. ‘The difficulty has been 
enhanced further by the widespread conviction that fish must be 
reared to fingerliny size if stocking is to be effective. 
The output of the trout stations has been limited because the 
supply of fish eggs for any one season is strictly limited. In one 
sense it is an annual crop, and the yield can not be increased any 
more than can that of agricultural products. The bureau has 
developed domesticated brood stocks and wild-egg collecting stations 
